Springs



' (ModeL) S. T. NIGKERSON.

SEAL LOCK.

No. 465,723. Patented Dec. 22, 1891.

ATTORNEYS UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

SIDNEY THURSBY NIOKERSON, OF TOPEKA, KANSAS, ASSIGNOR OF FORTY- NINE ONE-HUNDREDTHS TO H. S. CABLE, OF COLORADO SPRINGS, COLO- RADO.

SEAL-LOCK.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 465,723, dated December 22, 1891.

Application filed August 14, 1890. Serial No. 362,005. (ModeL) To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, SIDNEY THURSBY N ICK- ERSON, of Topeka, inthe county of Shawnee and State of Kansas, have invented new and Improved Door Latch and Seal Devices, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

My invention relates to devices intended more particularly for latching and sealing railway-car doors, but applicable also for sealfastening other movable parts or structures.

The invention has for its object to provide simple, inexpensive, efficient, and quickly-operative devices of .this character.

The invention will first be described, and then will be particularly pointed out in claims hereinafter set forth.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, in which similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the figures.

Figure 1 is a side elevation of 'parts of a cardoor and its jamb, showing the door fastened and sealed in accordance with my invention. Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional view taken through the latch and seal devices and on the line at a; in Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a front view of the latch and seal devices, partly broken away and with the seal indicated in dotted lines. Fig. 4; is an under side or rear view of the latch and seal device, and Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken on the line y y in Fig. 4.

The hasp A of the seal device is held by a staple a to the car-door B in the ordinary manner.

To the j arnb C of the doorway next or against which the door closes is fastened, preferably by screws or bolts 01 d, a metal base-plate D, which supports the operative parts of the latch and seal mechanism. This plate is made thicker or deeper at one end, preferably its upper end, which is recessed or hollowed out at the back to provide a chamber d, which has an end opening or slot d which is above the outer face of the thinner other end portion of the plate, in which is formed an outside face pocket or recess 6, preferably about three-sixteenths of an inch deep, to accommodate a frangible seal E, made, preferably, of

baked clay, glass, or other material which m ay easily be broken by a hammer or other tool. The lower farther corners of the pocket e are overlaid by flanges c e on the plate D, and behind which flanges that end of the seal E is retained, while its opposite end is held in place by an arm j, which is fixed to the shaft F of the latch or button-head G of the device. This shaft F is journaled in the plate D and in a lug H thereon, which projects some little distance beyondthe face of the plate and enters the slot a of the hasp A when the car-door is latched and sealed. Thelatch or button-head G is fixed to the outer end of the shaft F and alwaysturnswithit, andtheinner end of theshaft carries, besides the arm f, another arm f, which projects about in the same radial plane as the arm f, and when the door is latched and sealed extends down at the inner face of the lower solid portion of the base-plate D and into the path of a trip-lever I, presently described. A spring f held to the shaft F and to an adjacent stud d on the plate D, acts normally to turn the shaft around until its arms f f and the latch or button-head G are in alignment with the hasp-receiving lug H of the plate, at which positions the shaft F and latch G are retained by contact of the shaft-arm or seal-detect f with a stop-lug (1* on the inside of the base-plate.

The trip-lever I is fulcrumed atz' to lugs on the rear face of the base-plate D, and. at one end is provided with a lug or push-button J, which extends through a hole 6 in the plate D and opening into the seal-receiving pocket or recess 6 of said plate. A shoulder on the button J prevents projection of it beyond the base-wall of this pocket, so that the seal completely covers the push-button. At one end the lever I has a projection or lug t", which detains the arm f of the latch-button shaft F when or after it is turned around past it, and at its other end the trip-lever-has a stoplug 43 which limits the inward movement of the push-button and lever after the'detent clears or releases the shaft-arm f. The spring i projects the lever or push-button J forward into or through the plate-opening e at the seal-pocket. A stud 2' on the plate D makes the lever I work better relatively to the arm f of the shaft F. Any other suitable form of retainer for the arm f other than the tripleverI and accessible from the seal reces or pocket may be employed.

The operation of my invention is very simple and effective. After the car-door is closed to the jamb O the frangible seal E is slipped into the base-plate pocket 6 and under the flanges e e, and the hasp A is then swung over until its hole or eye 0. passes over the latch or button-head G, which then is in alignment with the base-plate stud H, over or upon which the hasp passes. If now the latch is turned about one-quarter around over or outside of the hasp and against the tension of the spring f of the shaft F, this shaft will also be turned to swing its arm f around over the outer face of the seal E to retain or lock it in the base-plate pocket e, and the other shaft-arm f will press back the push-button lever I, and then latch behind it to retain the latch or button-head G at about right angles with the base-plate stud Hand over the hasp to prevent release of the hasp from the stud and securely lock the car-door.

' To unlock and open the door, it is first necessary to break and remove the frangible seal E to expose or give access to the push-button J and then press this buttoninward until the catchflng or detent t" of the leverI is pushed back clear of the arm f of the shaft F, whereupon the spring f instantly reacts and swings theshaft F one-quarter around to its normal position, when the latch or button-head G will again be in alignment with the lug H to allow the hasp A to be swung back from the lug and latch and leave the car-door free to be opened at pleasure. In this adjustment of the latch and seal mechanism the arm f of the shaft F is swung upward entirely clear of the base-plate pocket e to allow another seal pinchers or implement is required in sealing the latched door. The seal mechanism cannot be picked or the door opened without breaking the seal. The cost of the frangible seals is a mere trifle, and the small number and positive action of the parts of the seal mechanism assures safety against inoperative derangement of the parts.

, Fig. 5 of the drawings illustrates how the base-plate stud Il may be provided with aseries of apertures 72, allowing use of an ordinary wire and lead seal by passing the wire through the apertures and around the hasp when it is slipped over the stud. This ordinary seal and the frangible seal E may thus be used either separately or together at the will of the freight agents of one or more railways over which the car travels.

Although I herein more particularly describe the latch and seal devices as applied to use for securing doors of railway-cars, it is obvious that they maybe employed in latching and sealing chests, trunks, room-doors, closets, or lockers or movable objects of any description.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent 1; In door latch and seal devices, the combination, with a hasp or retainer, of a baseplate adapted for engagement of or by the hasp and provided with a seal receiving pocket, a latch ,journaled to the plate, a trip on said plate provided with a pushbutton accessible from the seal-pocket, said trip forming a detent to the latch-head, and a springnormally throwing the latch-head to unlatching position, substantially as described, whereby on pressing the push-button the latch-head will be releasedand the spring will reset the head to release the hasp or allow application of it, as set forth.

2. In door latch and seal devices,the combination, with a hasp or retainer, of a baseplate adapted for engagement of or by the hasp and provided with aseal-receivingpocket, alatchhead journaled to the plate and provided with an arm adapted to overlie the seal-pocket, a trip on said plate provided with a push-button accessible from the seal-pocket, said'trip forming a detent to the latch-head, substantially as described, whereby on pressing the pushbutton the latch-head will be released to allow it to be turned to release the hasp from the base-plate,and the latch-head arm will simultaneouslybe swung away from or clear of the seal-pocket, as set forth.

3. In a door latch and seal, the combination, with a plate having aseal-pocket and an aperture in rear of the seal-pocket, of a spring actuated shaft mounted in the plate and mechanism for holding the shaft against the action of its spring, substantially as and for the purpose specified.

4. In a door latch and seal, the combination, with a plate constructed to receive a seal and havingan aperture in rear of the seal, of a spring-actuated shaft mounted in theplate and provided with an arm on its inner end and a'trip-lever engaging the arm of theshaft to hold the same, substantially as described.

5. In a door latch and seal, the combination, with a plate constructed to receivea seal and having an aperture in rear of the seal, of a spring-actuated shaft mounted in the plate and provided with an arm on its inner end, and a spring-pressed trip-lever provided with a push-button or lug projecting into the aperture of the plate, substantially as described.

6. In a door latch and seal, the combination, with a hasp and a plate having a seal-recess and an opening in the recess, of a springpressed shaft mounted in the frame and provided with a button on its outer end, and two arms, one of which projects over the seal-recess, and a spring-pressed trip-lever engaging the inner arm of the shaft and provided with a push-button or lug entering the opening of the said plate, substantially as herein shown and described.

7. The combination, in door latch and seal devices, of a hasp or retainer on the door, a base-plate on the jamb,provided with a pocket e for a frangible seal and a hole e thereat, and also having a stud H, to which the hasp is adapted, a shaft F, having a latch-head G above the lug H, and also provided with an arm f Within the plate,and a leverLfulcruined to the plate and provided with a push-button J at the pocket-hole 6 said lever engaging the shaft-arm f to hold the latch-head G across the hasp when it engages the lug H, substantially as described.

8. The combination, in door latch and seal devices, of a hasp or retainer on the door, a base-plate on the jamb,provided witha pocket 6 for a frangible seal and a hole 6 at the pocket, said plate also having a stud H, to which the hasp is adapted, a shaft F, having a latch-head G above the lug H, and also provided within the plate with two arms ff, the one f adapted to overlie the seal-pocket e, and a lever I, fulcrumed to the plate and provided with a push-button J at the pocket-hole e said lever engaging the shaft-arm f to hold the latch-head G across the hasp when. it engages the lug H, substantially as described.

9. The combination, in door latch and seal devices, of a hasp or retainer on the door, a base-plate on the jamb, provided with a pocket e for a frangible seal and a hole 6 at the pocket, said plate also having a stud H, to which the hasp is adapted, a shaft F, having a latch-head G above the lug H, and also provided within the plate with two arms f and f,

the one f adapted to overlie the seal-pocket e,

and a lever I, fulcrumed to the plate and provided with a push-button J at the pocket-hole 6 said lever engaging the shaft-arm f to hold the latch-head G across the hasp when it engages the lug H, substantially as described.

10. In door latch and seal devices, combining a base-plate having a pocket for a frangible seal, a lug H, a shaft F, provided with a latch-head G and a stop-arm f and a trip device having a push-button at the seal-pocket. all adapted for operation with a hasp or retainer, substantially as specified, said lug H having holes h, adapted to receive the ordinary lead seal -wires, substantially as described.

SIDNEY TIIURSBY NICKERSON.

Witnesses:

H. F. MORRIS, M. V. HAINS. 

